my blog-log of writing and other crafts

Last spring I made this lace dress after seeing a little girl’s version in this tutorial on Project Run and Play. I thought it would be the perfect project to share with you on Valentine’s Day.

It was definitely one of the most time consuming sewing projects I’ve embarked on. The trip to the fabric store was an endeavor in itself. I purchased:

somewhere between 20 and 30 yards of white and ivory laces of different patterns and widths

Red RIT dye

cotton muslin to make a lining

bias tape for the neck and arm-holes

When I got home, I laid out all my strips lace on my work table in a giant rectangle. Then I sewed each strip together with a zig-zag stitch. When I had attached all the laces to one another, I used RIT to dye the lace and my cotton muslin red. The best part of the dyeing process is that each lace (being of different fabrici content) takes up the dye differently.

Then cut the muslin lining into a front and back piece for my dress. I sewed these together and tried it on, just to make sure I wouldn’t mess up my lace fabric. It fit! So I used a seam ripper to take the pieces apart again. I laid the muslin over the lace and cut two pieces of lace to fit my pattern. And finally, I sewed them together to make my dress, adding bias tape to the sleeves and neckline. This dress took a lot of work, but the end result is one of a kind!